Emmaline Shaw

In my (nearly!) 30-year teaching career, I have worked in a wide variety of primary settings. I found my teaching niche at a specialist SEMH school in Northampton, where I stayed for 16 years. I loved the variety the job gave me, both in terms of teaching and also therapeutic input for the children. I used my creative and adaptive approach to enable them to engage with, and love learning.

My main area of knowledge is Early Childhood Trauma, ASD and SLCN.

Things I like…

• Walking my dog
• Reading
• Chocolate
• Coffee
• Yoga

Sarah McCullough

I’m Sarah and I have over 20 years of experience within the Primary Education Sector, having worked in a variety of roles. This breadth of experience has given me valuable insight into the diverse needs within Social, Emotional, Mental Health (SEMH) and SEND support.

I have worked closely with children, their parents and supporting practitioners to ‘unpick’ the behaviours of children and develop tailored action plans that help children thrive both in the classroom and within their wider community.

As a class teacher, I was actively involved in a variety of initiatives to support my pupils, including relational and responsive teaching. Across my career, I have collaborated closely with SENDCos and wider teams to design effective action plans that were/are truly conducive to individual children’s progress. I understand that small steps are vital, and that a flexible, dynamic approach is often key, as no single strategy works for every child. With this in mind, I make it a priority to keep my knowledge and practice up to date through relevant workshops, courses, and professional discussions.

SEND and SEMH are areas of education that I feel deeply passionate about. I am proud of my empathetic approach and of my commitment to ensuring that children have positive, supportive educational experiences. My background has strengthened my ability to identify areas where children may need additional support, and I have built a growing bank of tools and strategies that I share with families and professionals to help create meaningful and lasting positive outcomes.

Additional Training

• Annual Safeguarding
• Annual PREVENT
• Practicing Story Massage November 2022
• Using an emotion coaching approach November 2023
• Positive Psychology and SEMH November 2023
• FASD November 2024
• Supporting Neurodivergent Students at Risk of EBSA March 2025
• An introduction to Lifestory Work & Lifestory listening April 2025
• ADHD and Sleep April 2025
• Trauma and Trauma Informed Practice (Tier 1 & 2) February 2025
• ADHD strategies: Balancing the Sensory System June 2025
• Creating a culture of belonging June 2025

ADHD Strategies: Emotional Mastery in ADHD June 2025

Understanding trauma of care experienced children June 2025

Understanding pupil Mental health and Wellbeing September 2025

Karen Sharp

From starting her working life within Respite care at Fairlawns School-now Rowan Gate, to being an Inclusion Manager, Karen has had experience and training with diverse SEND and SEMH needs. She has been working in the county for over 30 years and has worked in diverse roles from whole school Inclusion Manager to Maplefields Special School Secondary English and PSHCE lead. There is not a subject that she hasn’t been curriculum co-ordinator for!

Previously as well as being a consultant for Maplefields, she is arranged and presented the NNC SENDCO Forums and arranged and led the NNC “Meet the Professionals “events for parents of children with SEND. Karen is also a mother and understands the challenges parents can have with diagnosis and supporting their children.

Karen enjoyed mentoring University students and driving whole school initiatives. She has acquired the NPQH and the TDA SENDCo qualification. Karen enjoys keeping her practice up to date and is a member of NASEN. She researches and reads articles providing information on neuroscience and SEND developments. Karen has led school teams: Teachers,TAs and ELSAs and provided induction and carried out performance appraisal.

Karen has experience of life as a teacher, SENDCo, member of SLT and as a DSL. She has been the lead for children in care and those with EAL. She is aware of and understands the difficulties that teachers have, with dealing with children with SEND in the mainstream classroom, and welcomes the opportunity to share her professional experience with schools.

It is important to Karen to support schools with identifying and supporting children with SEND and SEMH needs. She understands that with consistency of approach, the right support and understanding, children will thrive and overcome challenges. She enjoys meeting staff and building professional relationships and being a source of information and support. She carries out training with teachers and TAs to help build confidence, knowledge and ways to support the children in our schools with SEMH needs.

Maylie Dickerson

Over the last 32 years, I have taught all of the primary age groups and for the last 15 years have been a SENDCo, DSL and Designated teacher for Children in Care. I have also had various leadership roles, including Deputy Head, and co-founded a Children’s Centre and Pre-school.

I have worked as a consultant SENDCo and Specialist Leader in Education for Safeguarding across several schools and for the last 10 years, I have had my own supervision consultancy for staff who work in Safeguarding and Pastoral support roles, those working with children with SEND, children in care and EYFS staff.

I am currently a SENDCo and DDSL at two local primary schools, alongside working for Maplefields’ Outreach.

All three of my roles have led to me supporting children who have had or who are having adverse childhood experiences, trauma or SEND (and sometimes more than one of those) which can make for big feelings and often the behaviour to match.

I get a great sense of achievement from helping staff to uncover the real needs behind a child’s behaviour and working with them to provide the right support.